Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2003. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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New York Times (12.18.03) - Thursday, December 18, 2003
Reuters
While life expectancy is increasing in most of the world, adult life expectancy in Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland and Zimbabwe has dropped by 20 years because of AIDS.
"In some parts of the world there is a continued expectation of longer and more comfortable life, while in many others there is despair over the failure to control disease though the means to do so exist," Dr. Jong Wook Lee, WHO's director general, wrote in the introduction.
The average life expectancy for both sexes was 37.9 in Zimbabwe; 39.7 in Zambia; and 39.9 in Angola. In contrast, in Japan, a baby girl can expect to live to 85. Switzerland's life expectancy was 80.6, and life expectancy was 80.4 in Sweden and 79.7 in France.
Of the 57 million premature deaths in 2002, 10.5 million were children younger than five, and 98 percent of those were in developing countries. In 14 African countries, child mortality exceeded 1990 levels, WHO reported. More than 300 children per 1,000 born in Sierra Leone die before age five, and a child born there today will probably not live beyond 36.
The report, which includes information on traffic deaths and the fight against polio and AIDS, cited the widening chasm in health care and exposure to disease between rich and poor countries as areas of concern. "Today's global health situation raises urgent questions about justice," wrote Lee. "A world marked by such inequities is in very serious trouble."
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